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UMES' new partnership ripens

University's Food Science and Technology department branches out into commercialization  

PRINCESS ANNE -- (July 15, 2012) -- A new product under development at the Food Science and Technology department at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore could change the way people think about tomato juice.  

 

Using a blend of heirloom varieties, Luke's Premier Foods owner Jim Hudson has created what he calls tomato nectar -- a clear liquid that is free of pulp, but has all the flavor of a fresh tomato.

 

 "It puts it in kind of a unique category," he said.

While Food Science and Technology previously focused on food safety, the department is branching out, said Jurgen Schwarz, the department's director.

Now it is working with Hudson to take his product from a home kitchen to commercial production with the help of a Maryland Industrial Partnership grant to cover expenses, Schwarz said.

Production should begin in the next few weeks as the harvest of local tomatoes gets under way, and will provide farmers with a market for blemished fruits that normally go to waste.

"Those seconds can be used and provide another source of income for them," Schwarz said.

'Tomato snob'

An avid home gardener, Hudson began growing tomatoes at his home in Iowa, but soon found he liked the taste of heirloom varieties the best, and now confesses to being "a tomato snob."

When all of his tomatoes began ripening at the same time, he began looking for creative ways to use and preserve them.

Hudson got his grandmother's recipe for tomato juice and began preparing batches of it, to the delight of his grandson, who was visiting from Colorado.

"He likes tomato juice better than any other beverage," Hudson said.

After experimenting with blending different varieties, Hudson gave bottles of it as Christmas presents to his friends, including one who is a chef.

"He said, 'Jim, this is the best I've ever tasted'," Hudson said.

Now retired from the business world for 14 years, Hudson decided to launch a new career by marketing the product named for his young grandson, and began looking for tomato growers.

He looked to the Eastern Shore, where he has roots. His father, Peter Farrell Hudson, was originally from Hudson’s Corner near Marion Station in Somerset County.

Hudson contacted his cousin, Starr White, who put him in touch with Allen Butler, an heirloom tomato farmer in Marion.

Hudson plans to take all of Butler's hand-picked, vine-ripened seconds and process them within 72 hours of harvest -- one of the advantages of a small company.

"No large guy could do that," he said.

The next step was finding help to develop the product, and Hudson found it through the Somerset County Economic Development Commission, USDA Rural Development and the University of Maryland Eastern Shore.

Hudson said he sold his home in Iowa and moved to Princess Anne because of the amount of support and belief in his product.

"It's just been extraordinary," he said.

The concept of public-private partnerships is nothing new to UMES which has also hosted two greenhouse businesses and a solar farm on campus.

Schwarz said he is excited about working with Hudson.

"I got lucky with this guy," he said. "He is awesome."

New concept

Hudson's tomato nectar is what is often called tomato water -- the clear juice that separates from the pulp after tomatoes are squeezed.

Chefs use it to make soups and sauces or as a poaching liquid. Bartenders use it to mix clear bloody Marys.

While tomato water is commercially available to chefs, Hudson said none of them use heirloom tomatoes.

"It really changes the whole concept of cooking," he said.

Tomato juice sold in stores is made by adding water to the remaining solids, or paste. It requires a lot of added salt and other flavorings because most of the flavor is in the tomato water, which has been removed.

Hudson also bottles tomato juice which is made from the whole tomato -- the water and the paste -- and a bloody Mary mix.

The products have met with success at food shows, and Hudson is currently trying to market them to stores. He has a meeting this week with representatives from Whole Foods.

He also is working to develop a co-op for heirloom tomato growers, and farmers who are interested can contact him through his website, lukespremierfoods.com.

Since the products are made in micro-batches, eventually Hudson hopes to put all his equipment in the back of a tractor-trailer which can be moved from farm to farm during the tomato harvest.

During his time at UMES, Hudson said he will figure out how to do that.

"We're here to develop the concept," he said.

By Liz Holland, Daily Times staff writer

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This article and photograph from The Daily Times is reproduced here with the newspaper's permission.